Key UN chance
By GEOFFREY BEW
Published: 21 May 2008
A TOTAL of 192 United Nations (UN) members will vote today on the memberships of six countries from Asia, including Bahrain, to the Human Rights Council.
To win a seat on the Geneva-based council, Bahrain must collect a minimum of 97 votes from other countries voting in a secret ballot.
It is contesting alongside Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and East Timor, who are all competing for just four seats in Asia.
Key UN chance
By GEOFFREY BEW
Published: 21 May 2008
A TOTAL of 192 United Nations (UN) members will vote today on the memberships of six countries from Asia, including Bahrain, to the Human Rights Council.
To win a seat on the Geneva-based council, Bahrain must collect a minimum of 97 votes from other countries voting in a secret ballot.
It is contesting alongside Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and East Timor, who are all competing for just four seats in Asia.
Candidates are evaluated on the political rights, civil liberties, freedom of the Press and the promotion of human rights.
One of the conditions of participation in the council is for those elected to “uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights”.
Membership is also subject to periodic review.
A group of political and human rights societies earlier pledged only to support Bahrain’s candidacy for a seat on the council unless it made a firm commitment to ratify several international conventions and recommendations.
This includes introducing legislation to improve the rights of migrant workers such as housemaids, prevent racial discrimination, give redress to alleged victims of torture, introduce citizenship equality and protect the role of human rights activists.
The 40 signatories include the Bahrain Human Rights Society (BHRS), now-dissolved Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR), Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights and various political societies.
The societies’ representatives held a meeting with Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Nazar Al Baharna on Monday to discuss the issue.
“We support Bahrain to be elected to the council as this will speed up the implementation of conventions and recommendations and Bahrain will be under focus all the time,” said BHRS assistant secretary-general Dr Abdulla Al Deerazi.
He said the societies were pleased to speak with the minister and to build up a partnership between the government and civil groups.
“We agreed that there should be a timetable, such as a four-year plan, so the government can start with the tangible things that can be implemented immediately and the rest could be scheduled according to priority before the next Universal Periodic Review (UPR),” he said.
An advanced, unedited version of the UN council’s UPR welcomed the adoption of the National Action Charter in 2001 and the creation of an inter-ministerial taskforce to tackle human trafficking.
It also praised Bahrain for the significant achievements it had made on the status of women.
In April, the government also announced plans to set up a National Institution for Human Rights by the end of the year, increased inspections of labour camps and better protection of domestic workers, who are excluded from the country’s labour laws.
Dr Al Baharna revealed a host of other initiatives as part of a National Action Plan, including the creation of a taskforce to ensure the government complies with its international human rights commitments.
Bahrain’s Permanent Representative to UN Industrial Development Organisation Abdulla Abdullatif Abdulla said earlier month that the country stands a good chance of being elected to the council.
Mr Abdulla was responding to criticism by two human rights groups opposing its candidature to the council, describing it as “unwarranted and unfounded”. geoff@gdn.com.bh
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